In interviews she conducted with 55 girls who have opted to learn at home rather than in conventional schools, Sheffer, editor of Growing Without Schooling magazine, has established that their enhanced self-esteem is a noticeable by-product. Her respondents are able to put to rest concerns about their social lives and opportunities to form close friendships. Instead, they almost universally express a sense of liberation at being able to make choices and to believe in themselves. For many, traditional schools had not nurtured these qualities, for a variety of reasons. This insider look at home schooling dispels myths about what it is and what it is not, and contributes to the general educational discussion about adolescent girls by demonstrating that ``not all girls are suffering or have to suffer.'' Sheffer's previous books include A Life Worth Living: Selected Letters of John Holt. (Sept.)